Exway X1 review - The premium mid-tier has arrived!

The Exway X1 represents an interesting time in the development of electric skateboards. Not only does it represent the best of an emerging mid-tier price point, it’s also king of the the slim-lines; a category ever-increasing in popularity.

Jam-packed with quality components and special features, let’s have a closer look at why the X1 has taken the latter half of 2018 by storm.

A TL;DR is available at the end of this review.​

“It looks like a Stary.” I said that too at first glance, but this is no Stary. This is a powerful, dual hub motor driven board that redefines what an electric skateboard can be at a $888 USD price point (correct at the time of writing).

Aside from the intriguing price, the other main selling point of the X1 is its slim and light-weight design. This is an important feature for people who want or need an electric skateboard that can pass as a regular longboard, but of course slim and light-weight comes at the expense of batteries and thus range. No, we can’t have everything, at least not yet.

Housing the battery pack within the deck itself also requires the deck to be stiff and rigid. This combination of factors positions the Exway X1 squarely in a very specific segment of the market. If you want/need a super stealth and light-weight board, don’t want to go down the short board route and only have short distances to travel across smooth and forgiving terrain, then you’re exactly who the X1 is built for. If you’re surrounded by terrible roads or require a board with a lot of range, then the X1 is probably not the board for you.

With regards to quality and features though, this is where the X1 really shines. Unboxing the X1 was an Apple-like experience and a real treat compared to other products coming directly out of China.

The Exway X1 is built around a 37-inch multi-layered, Canadian maple, bamboo, fiberglass and carbon fiber deck. Needless to say that this deck is as stiff and ridged as they come. There is absolutely zero flex.

Supporting the deck are 45° Seismic Aeon downhill trucks complemented by proprietary Seismic 90A bushings. Quality trucks and bushings on a China-direct board are hard to come by and these are some of the best!

The wheels are 80mm 80A Kegel clones. Some extra/replacement 83mm urethane sleeves for the hub motors also come in the box. I double-checked the box for accompanying 83mm front wheels, but they were nowhere to be seen. Something about having miss-matched wheel sizes on the rear compared to the front (even if it's just a couple of mm) messes with my OCD, so I stuck with the 80mm sleeves that came with the the board to match the size of the front wheels.

The dual 1000 watt hub motors have some pretty nifty machined hub caps, making the board look truly sophisticated, high-tech and high-quality. I sense a similarity between the motors of the X1 and the motors of the Harvoo. There is a distinct sound emitted by these motors that I have only ever heard on these two boards.

The power is drawn from a 12s1p flat pack built right into the enclosure-less deck. The cells that make up this pack are essentially flat (prismatic) polymer pouches producing a Li-ion chemistry. The pack only totals 2.8Ah (or 120Wh), which is pretty small, so you can imagine the range it produces is definitely going to be on the low side, but this is the necessary trade-off if you want a slim-line board; something’s got to give and that something is range.

The battery pack being 120Wh means that it's airflight friendly in countries that allow batteries up to 160Wh to be brought onto planes as cabin baggage (check local laws). The only issue is that the pack isn’t (easily) removable, which means you’re going to have to negotiate taking the entire board on the plane with you as cabin baggage. In some countries (like Australia) this is never going to happen, and you can’t check anything in with a battery above 99Wh. This makes the X1 travel friendly in some countries, whilst simultaneously being a travel nightmare in others.

Now to the heart of the board, the ESC and remote. Exway and Hobbywing collaborated on a custom ESC and remote for the Exway X1. The remote interface is very similar (near identical) to the common, Boosted-clone interface we're used to seeing on Wowgo's, Ownboard's and many, many others, but the quality here has been turned-up 100 fold! The Exway remote comes equipped with four speed modes, is slightly thinner and has been given a matte, rubberized finish for extra grip. The Exway remote also features a small OLED display, which displays the speed mode, direction of travel, mph/kph, board battery percentage and remote battery percentage - everything you could want at a moments glance.

Reality (for this section please note that I weigh about 203lbs (92kg) these days and I ride flat-out as often as possible)

Top Speed: 24.2mph (39kph)

Range: 6.2 miles (10km)

Hills: 20-25% likely

Weight: 13lbs (6.3kg)

The top speed was measured using the digital read-out on the Exway remote, which measured only a fraction under the claimed spec, so that’s a pass. However, when trying to measure the top speed of the X1 using a GPS app (Map My Ride), the top speed ride data never matched the top speed I know I achieved via the remote speedometer. This is a strange anomaly that so far I have been unable to solve. Map My Ride works perfectly in measuring the top speed of every other board I’ve tested. I do believe the Exway remote speedometer represents a more accurate top speed result over the Map My Ride data.

The range result is what I predicted for the size of the battery pack taking into account my weight and riding style. The manufacturers spec sheet will always give you the maximum range (there or there-abouts), so there’s no need for me to test that. My aim is to give you a picture of the minimum range you can expect if you actually want to ride the thing! This gives you a ballpark to work within; you now know that the Exway X1 will give you anywhere between 6.2 and 10 miles (10-16km) worth of range depending on how much you weigh and how aggressively you intend to ride.

Regarding sag, the battery size and type used by the X1 suggests it’s a prime candidate for some pretty significant sag once the battery is past the 50% mark. In fact, many reviewers report exactly this. However, my unit wasn't too bad. I've definitely had worse! I felt like the X1 was still going strong until it had about 30% power remaining. It didn't become a major pain in the ass until about 20% power remaining. The board battery percentage does have a tendency to yo-yo, which is attributable to the type of battery cell used.

The Exway X1 conquered all of my local 12-15+% hills with ease. In fact, on a recent group ride these same hills were further conquered by 220+lbs (100+kg) riders on X1’s with varying battery levels. Thus I have no qualms in suggesting the X1 should be able to tackle 20-25% inclines with relative ease, the obvious caveat being how performance is likely to diminish with lower battery levels and heavier riders.

The claimed vs. reality weight spec of the X1 virtually hit the bulls-eye. This is fantastic news for those of you seeking a light-weight board, but are skeptical of the claims made by manufacturers. Exway hasn’t stretched the truth here, not even an ounce.

AESTHETICS AND RIDE FEEL

On one hand, the lack of any protruding parts and the use of in-wheel, hub motors means the Exway X1 can pass as a regular longboard. On the other hand, the design aesthetic, logo, griptape design and machined hub caps make the board look like a computer on wheels. There's nothing retro, old-school or traditional about the Exway X1. It's all new-school here. Whether this type of look is for you or not is entirely subjective. As for me, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't considering re-gripping the X1 so it looks like less of a Segway product and more like a true longboard.

A stiff deck and thinly-urethaned hub motors produce exactly the type of ride you’d expect. On poor terrain it’s a teeth-rattling and ankle-shattering experience. On smooth surfaces, however, this is one of the most agile and nimble boards I’ve ridden, particularly for a longboard.

As for the throttle and brake response, the thumb-roller control configuration continues to lead the way as the best interface for finessed and precision control.

The ESC itself is essentially the Hobbywing ESC on steroids. There's more "guts" here, no doubt about it. It generates the type of "punchy" yet smooth power curves Boosted riders would be familiar with. If Boosted produced a hub-driven board, it would feel like the X1. The acceleration and top speed generated by the X1 far exceeds that of other boards built around the generic version of the Hobbywing ESC, but it does so whilst maintaining a smoothness and finesse only a few premium board can match.

All-in-all the ESC and remote combination here is an absolute winner and should be the envy of many other higher priced premium brands.

I’ve used the board for a variety of purposes over the last month or so. My commute to work is a little over 10km. To be sure I could make it in one charge I rode the board in and out of work several times on the third speed mode. My conclusion is that using the X1 for daily, max-range commuting isn’t ideal, particularly if you have less than perfect terrain to deal with. Having to ride the board in anything other than speed mode four will also be a bit ho-hum for experienced riders. However, riding the X1 to the gym, which is much closer to my house, was far more enjoyable.

The Exway X1 would be a fantastic board for mixed commuting or last mile transportation. By that I mean perhaps taking public transport part of the way to where you need to go and saving the Exway for the last, best and hopefully smoothest part of your commute. The benefit of the Exway over something like a Boosted for last mile transportation is the size and weight of the Exway relative to a Boosted. The Exway X1 is simply far lighter, easier to carry, manoeuvre and hold in tight public places packed with people and easier to store.

I personally enjoy the X1 most for short distance, high speed riding and carving. An empty, double-wide street with fresh bitumen is the X1’s best friend! So much more fun than a tight bike lane or path. An X1 unleashed, taking full advantage of the Seismic set up is a fantastic experience.

HIGHLIGHTS

Stealth - This board is incredibly sleak. If you need an incognito board, there really isn't anything better on the market right now.

The remote also turns the board on/off - It's the little things that can make you smile the most sometimes. One button to rule them all...

The app - The Exway app is the gateway to firmware updates over the air. This feature alone puts many other famous brands to shame. The app also keeps a total odometer reading and allows for custom acceleration and braking curves to be configured by the user (however, I believe most people will find the default settings will work for them just fine).

​Other cool things you can do in the app is configure whether or not you want to be able to change speed modes whilst moving, make cruise control available, or give your board that "Boosted feel" by toggling "Free Mode" on, which means after you bring your board to a stand-still, continued pressure on the brake will now put the board into reverse. You can also configure safe mode as well as customize stand-by and wheel size settings.

​Seismic trucks and bushings - The quality here makes for an enjoyably nimble ride. The responsiveness, reaction and rebound time in this truck and bushing setup is second-to-none. Seriously, so much fun!

Magsafe-type charge port - Remember when Macbook's used to have useful features?... Anyway, the Exway X1's charging port comprises of a magsafe-type mechanism. It magnetically snaps on to charge and will safely come off if the cord is tugged, without damaging any componentry. The charge port cover also snaps shut, sealing the charge port autonomously.

IP55 water and dust resistance rating - This is the only board I've ridden recently that has a decent water and dust protection rating. I don't make a habit out of riding any board in any amount of water if I can avoid it, but sprinkler run-off water that streams across my path on some of my rides, which makes me nervous on most boards (usually resulting in me stepping off), I just ride right on through with the Exway with absolute confidence.

Light-weight and user friendly - Short board? What do you need a short board for? Because they're light weight, portable, easy to carry, easy to store in crowded cafes and restaurants, easy to lug around on public transport etc.? Well, so is the Exway X1, plus you get the extra stability and confidence that comes from a full size longboard.

LOWLIGHTS

The trade off - No, you can't have everything. If you want a super light-weight, slim-line and stealth looking longboard, you're going to have to sacrifice batteries and thus range. You're also going to have to adapt to a stiff deck (if you haven't already) and accept that you're just going to have to avoid rougher surfaces with a board like this if you want to look after your ankles and teeth.

The battery cells - The cell type used by the Exway X1 was a necessary choice in order to achieve the design aesthetic they set out to achieve. However, the diminishing performance of these cells over a shorter lifetime is a known downside when compared to their cylindrical-celled cousins.

Exway or Segway? - I'm neither a fan of the name, branding, colour-scheme or griptape design. Subjective? Sure, but for me it's definitely a lowlight and likely one that will result in a re-grip of some sort.

​CONCLUSION/TL;DR

The Exway X1 is a unique board. Sensibly priced around the mid-range, yet packed with premium level features.​ If you're looking for a flexy commuter with decent range, look elsewhere. But if you want or need a board that can pass as a regular longboard and are willing to sacrifice range in order to get it, there's really no better board to buy.

The stiff deck coupled with the Seismic trucks and bushings is a rewarding set up for those comfortable with high speed carving on smooth surfaces, but the same set up can be quite jarring on less than perfect bitumen or varied surface conditions.

For me the X1 represents a leisure board and a short distance, high speed commuter. If I want to go out for a quick cutting and slashing session on some of the recently sealed roads around my area, I'll take the X1 and ride it flat out until its dead! It is so nimble and responsive that it can truly catch you off-guard sometimes.

Otherwise, if I want to get somewhere close, get there fast and not have to muscle some of my larger and heavier boards around in order to do it, the X1 is also fills this need.

​If you're after a fast and responsive board, packed with premium features for a reasonable price, and only have to travel short distances across smooth surfaces, the Exway X1 certainly ticks all the boxes. However, the X1 becomes less appealing the further you have to travel and the worse the surface conditions become.